Your bar staff sells what they know, not what's most profitable. A cocktail with 18% pour cost earns you more than a beer with 25% pour cost, but your bartender doesn't know this. Give your team insight into margins and introduce a simple reward system to steer them toward the most profitable choices.
First, calculate the pour cost of all your drinks
Pour cost is the drink version of food cost. It shows what percentage of your selling price goes toward the purchase of alcohol and mixers.
💡 Example calculation:
Mojito selling price: €9.50 incl. 21% VAT
- Selling price excl. VAT: €9.50 / 1.21 = €7.85
- Rum (5cl at €28/liter): €1.40
- Lime, mint, sugar, soda: €0.35
- Total cost of goods: €1.75
Pour cost: (€1.75 / €7.85) × 100 = 22.3%
Pour cost formula: (Cost of goods for drink / Selling price excl. VAT) × 100
⚠️ Note:
Alcoholic beverages carry 21% VAT, not 9%. Always calculate excluding VAT for accurate pour cost.
Create a profitability overview for your team
Build a simple overview that shows your bartenders which drinks deliver the highest margins. Sort by pour cost from low to high.
💡 Example top 5 most profitable drinks:
- House white wine: 16% pour cost
- Premium gin and tonic: 18% pour cost
- Espresso Martini: 19% pour cost
- Aperol Spritz: 20% pour cost
- Mojito: 22% pour cost
Versus least profitable: Heineken (28% pour cost)
Post this overview where only your team can access it. Update monthly if purchase prices shift significantly.
Train your team in suggestive selling
Teach bartenders how to guide customers toward profitable choices without seeming pushy. This is one of the most common blind spots in kitchen management—staff don't realize their recommendations directly impact your bottom line.
- Customer asks "What wine do you have?" → Always start with your house wine
- Customer orders "A beer please" → "We just got a new craft beer in, fancy trying it?"
- Customer wants "Something tasty" → Mention your top 3 most profitable cocktails first
- Customer's torn between two options → Always choose the most profitable one
Introduce a simple reward system
Motivate your team by rewarding profitable sales. This works far better than just telling them what to do.
💡 Example reward system:
- Per bottle of house wine sold: €2 bonus
- Per premium cocktail (pour cost <20%): €1 bonus
- Monthly extra: €50 for highest average pour cost
Costs you €200/month, but increases your margin by €800+
Measure and monitor results
Track weekly which bartender sells which drinks. Check if your average pour cost drops and margins increase.
- Measure pour cost per bartender per week
- Compare revenue from premium drinks vs. standard offerings
- Check if total drink revenue increases (not just a shift)
Tools like KitchenNmbrs help track these figures automatically per drink, without manually calculating which bartender achieves which margin.
How do you train bar staff in profitable selling? (step by step)
Calculate the pour cost of all your drinks
Make a list of all drinks with cost price and selling price. Calculate the pour cost: (cost of goods / selling price excl. VAT) × 100. Sort from low to high pour cost.
Create a top 10 most profitable drinks list
Create an overview for your team with the 10 most profitable drinks. Post it at the bar where only staff can see it. Update monthly.
Train suggestive selling techniques
Teach your team how to mention the most profitable option first with every question. Practice standard phrases and have them learn the pour cost list by heart.
Introduce a bonus system
Reward sales of profitable drinks with small bonuses. For example €1 per premium cocktail or €2 per bottle of house wine. Measure weekly who achieves the best margin.
Monitor and evaluate results
Check weekly the average pour cost per bartender. Compare revenue from premium vs. standard drinks. Adjust the system based on results.
✨ Pro tip
Have your bartenders calculate their own weekly pour cost every Monday morning. Whoever achieves the lowest percentage over 4 weeks wins a €25 bonus.
Calculate this yourself?
In the KitchenNmbrs app you can do this in just a few clicks. 7 days free, no credit card.
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Frequently asked questions
What's a good pour cost for cocktails?
Typical pour cost for cocktails runs between 18% and 25%. Premium cocktails can hit lower (15-20%), while simple mixed drinks often land higher (25-30%).
How do I prevent staff from being too pushy with upsells?
Train them to always offer 2-3 options, with the most profitable first. Have them explain the benefits (taste, quality) instead of just pushing. Customers appreciate guidance, not pressure.
Should I give different bonuses per drink type?
Yes, give higher bonuses for drinks with lower pour cost. For example €2 for house wine (16% pour cost) and €0.50 for beer (28% pour cost). This directly rewards profitable behavior.
How often should I recalculate pour costs?
Check monthly whether suppliers have changed their prices. For major changes (>10%), recalculate immediately and update the list for your team.
📚 Sources consulted
- EU Verordening 852/2004 — Levensmiddelenhygiëne (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 853/2004 — Hygiënevoorschriften voor levensmiddelen van dierlijke oorsprong (2004) — Official source
- EU Verordening 1169/2011 — Voedselinformatie aan consumenten (2011) — Official source
- NVWA — Hygiënecode voor de horeca (2024) — Official source
- NVWA — Allergenen in voedsel (2024) — Official source
- Codex Alimentarius — International Food Standards (2024) — Official source
- FSA — Safer food, better business (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- BVL — Lebensmittelhygiene (HACCP) (2024) — Official source
- Warenwetbesluit Bereiding en behandeling van levensmiddelen (2024) — Official source
- WHO — Foodborne diseases estimates (2024) — Official source
Food Standards Agency (FSA) — https://www.food.gov.uk
The HACCP standards shown in this application are for informational purposes only. KitchenNmbrs does not guarantee that displayed values are current or complete. Always consult the FSA or your local authority for the latest regulations.
Written by
Jeffrey Smit
Founder & CEO of KitchenNmbrs
Jeffrey Smit built KitchenNmbrs from 8 years of hands-on experience as kitchen manager at 1NUL8 Group in Rotterdam. His mission: give every restaurant owner control over food cost.
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